Palmer v. State of Oklahoma

Case Number: CV-25-1271

Court: Oklahoma County District Court

Clients: Jennifer Palmer and Oklahoma Watch

Petition Filed: May 22, 2025

Background: In April 2025, Oklahoma Watch reporter Jennifer Palmer submitted a public records request to the Oklahoma State Department of Education seeking the resignation letter of a top official at the agency. 

The OSDE denied her request, claiming the record fell under an exemption in the state Open Records Act that allows public bodies to keep certain records related to internal personnel investigations confidential.

On behalf of Palmer and Oklahoma Watch, Leslie Briggs, the Reporters Committee’s Local Legal Initiative attorney for Oklahoma, filed this lawsuit against the state of Oklahoma. The lawsuit alleges that if there was no internal personnel investigation, the OSDE is unlawfully withholding the requested records. Even if there were an investigation, the lawsuit argues that the OSDE has abused its discretion by shielding this resignation letter because it previously released resignation letters related to other agency officials in response to public records requests.   

Quote: “The state Department of Education can no longer deny access to public records and expect the people of Oklahoma to accept it without question,” Briggs told Oklahoma Watch. “The Open Records Act ensures the people may exercise their right to know and be informed about their government. We expect OSDE to comply with those rights and will force compliance in court when they do not.”

Filings: 

2025-05-22: Petition for relief for violations of the Oklahoma Open Records Act